China has banned all Indonesian seafood imports after checks turned up toxins, dangerous chemicals and pathogens, the government food regulator said.
Shipments received before Friday would be carefully inspected, while all those shipped after that date would be returned or destroyed, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said in a circular posted on its Web site.
The announcement comes as Chinese products from toothpaste to toys, tires and fish are under increased scrutiny and have in some cases been banned after being found tainted or otherwise unsafe.
Martani Huseini, a senior official at Indonesia's Department of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, said the move appeared to be in reaction to an import ban imposed last month on Chinese food supplements, cosmetics and medicines over safety concerns.
Indonesia said it found that some Chinese cosmetics contained mercury and rhodamin, that medicines contained unauthorized chemicals, and that food supplements had some additives that were dangerous to the health.
Rhodamin is used to color products ranging from paper to cosmetics and food, and can be an irritant if exposed to the eyes or skin and toxic if swallowed, according to Indonesia's national drugs and food control agency.
"I was startled to hear that China responded by banning our seafood products for similar reasons," Huseini said.
He said the two sides would meet to discuss their deteriorating trade relations, and added he hoped China's decision would not impact seafood exports to other countries.
Huseini said Indonesia would investigate the Chinese claims but was confident it had fulfilled all international standards in seafood processing.
He said China was not Indonesia's main market for seafood exports, with annual sales to China only around US$150 million (?110 million).
The Chinese administration said Indonesian products have been found tainted with mercury and cadmium, metals that can accumulate in water and soil as a result of burning garbage, mining, or other industrial processes. Both have been linked to nerve damage, cancer, and other health problems in humans.
It also said products had been found to contain nitrofural, an anti-bacterial agent that has been found to potentially cause cancer in laboratory animals, as well as disease-causing pathogens.
The circular did not cite any individual cases or products and did not say how much seafood is imported from Indonesia to China.
Shipments received before Friday would be carefully inspected, while all those shipped after that date would be returned or destroyed, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said in a circular posted on its Web site.
The announcement comes as Chinese products from toothpaste to toys, tires and fish are under increased scrutiny and have in some cases been banned after being found tainted or otherwise unsafe.
Martani Huseini, a senior official at Indonesia's Department of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, said the move appeared to be in reaction to an import ban imposed last month on Chinese food supplements, cosmetics and medicines over safety concerns.
Indonesia said it found that some Chinese cosmetics contained mercury and rhodamin, that medicines contained unauthorized chemicals, and that food supplements had some additives that were dangerous to the health.
Rhodamin is used to color products ranging from paper to cosmetics and food, and can be an irritant if exposed to the eyes or skin and toxic if swallowed, according to Indonesia's national drugs and food control agency.
"I was startled to hear that China responded by banning our seafood products for similar reasons," Huseini said.
He said the two sides would meet to discuss their deteriorating trade relations, and added he hoped China's decision would not impact seafood exports to other countries.
Huseini said Indonesia would investigate the Chinese claims but was confident it had fulfilled all international standards in seafood processing.
He said China was not Indonesia's main market for seafood exports, with annual sales to China only around US$150 million (?110 million).
The Chinese administration said Indonesian products have been found tainted with mercury and cadmium, metals that can accumulate in water and soil as a result of burning garbage, mining, or other industrial processes. Both have been linked to nerve damage, cancer, and other health problems in humans.
It also said products had been found to contain nitrofural, an anti-bacterial agent that has been found to potentially cause cancer in laboratory animals, as well as disease-causing pathogens.
The circular did not cite any individual cases or products and did not say how much seafood is imported from Indonesia to China.
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